This week's reviews: Final film from an icon

Friday

Feb 28, 2014 at 12:01 AMFeb 28, 2014 at 4:45 PM

The final performance of an icon inspires both sadness and admiration, and few of these figures inspire as much reverence in their genre as Japanese filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki does. The titan of anime finishes his career strongly with The Wind Rises.

The story of a Japanese World War II fighter plane designer is handled carefully by the director, who mostly skips over the plane's involvement in historical controversy. The performances by the voice actors, which includeJoseph Gordon-Levitt, Emily Blunt, Werner Herzog, John Krasinski, William H. Macy, Mandy Patinkin, Martin Short and Stanley Tucci, add nuance to the film.

While the movie misses the mark historically speaking, is a great vehicle for a talented artist's final send-off, according to critic Frank Gabrenya.

"The decision to ignore disturbing issues is a blemish on the film, but Miyazaki almost makes up for it with the spectacular images that have always elevated his work," Gabrenya said in his review.

Gabrenya rated The Wind Rises three stars.

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Jared Rutecki, The Columbus Dispatch

The final performance of an icon inspires both sadness and admiration, and few of these figures inspire as much reverence in their genre as Japanese filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki does. The titan of anime finishes his career strongly with The Wind Rises.

The story of a Japanese World War II fighter plane designer is handled carefully by the director, who mostly skips over the plane's involvement in historical controversy. The performances by the voice actors, which includeJoseph Gordon-Levitt, Emily Blunt, Werner Herzog, John Krasinski, William H. Macy, Mandy Patinkin, Martin Short and Stanley Tucci, add nuance to the film.

While the movie misses the mark historically speaking, is a great vehicle for a talented artist's final send-off, according to critic Frank Gabrenya.

"The decision to ignore disturbing issues is a blemish on the film, but Miyazaki almost makes up for it with the spectacular images that have always elevated his work," Gabrenya said in his review.

Gabrenya rated The Wind Rises three stars.

More reviews

Son of God: Reverently told story of Jesus inoffensive but lacks passion Non-Stop: Liam Neeson makes jet drama take off